News Posts

Research that used DNA-based testing to compare the extent of fraudulent labeling of black caviar purchased before and after international protection shows conservation benefits. A team of scientists from the Institute for Conservation Science at Stony Brook University and the Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics at the Museum repeated a market survey of commercially available caviar in the New York City area that was conducted before the protection was put in place, and the results showed nearly a 50 percent decrease in fraudulently labeled caviar.

The research, published this week in the journal PLoS ONE, compared the results of two market surveys conducted 10 years apart. The previous market survey was conducted from 1995 to 1996, before sturgeon was listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in 1998. That survey revealed that 19 percent of commercially available caviar in the New York City area was mislabeled with respect to species origin. When sampling the same market from 2006 to 2008, fraudulently labeled caviar occurred in 10 percent of the caviar, and only in the samples bought online.

Ever since the first dinosaur fossil was identified almost 200 years ago, people have wondered how these fascinating animals lived, moved, and behaved. In the video series "Dinosaurs Explained" on AMNH.tv, Museum paleontologists Mark Norell,Michael Novacek, and Lowell Dingus answer the most frequently asked questions about dinosaurs.

Researchers have described two new ancient species of South American rodents, including the oldest known chinchilla, in a study published last week in American Museum Novitates, a peer-reviewed scientific journal of the Museum. The research, which was led by Ornella Bertrand, a recipient of the Museum’s Annette Kade Graduate Student Fellowship, substantiates what might be the earliest grasslands in the world.

Discover some of the most versatile animals on the planet in Spiders Alive!, a new immersive exhibition opening at the Museum on Saturday, July 28. Watch the video below for a peek at some of the live spiders that will be on display.

What inspires scientists and innovators? On July 19, First Comes the Dream, a celebration of New York City’s emergence as a premier technology center, brought luminaries from science, technology, and media to the Museum to find out.

Co-hosted by the Museum with leading tech blog Gizmodo and social networking app Foursquare, the evening began in the Hayden Planetarium with remarks from Museum President Ellen Futter, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, and New York City Deputy Mayor Robert Steel before launching the awe-struck audience on a tour of the universe with the Museum’s Director of Astrovisualization Carter Emmart.

Next, Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Museum’s Hayden Planetarium, sat down for an interview with iO9’s Annalee Newitz in the Cullman Hall of the Universe. In the video below, find out what sparked Dr. Tyson’s interest in astronomy and what he thinks the future of space exploration might hold.